Bruce Springsteen On Ticketmaster Backlash: 'Well, I'm Old'

New York, NY (Top40 Charts) Bruce Springsteen has finally spoken out about the backlash he received from fans, months after a Ticketmaster debacle that made ticketprices skyrocket for his 2023 tour. He is defending Ticketmaster's "dynamic pricing" model as it comes under fire for high ticket prices to concerts by The Boss, Taylor Swift, Harry Styles and other artists. Tickets for The Boss' 2023 tour sold for thousands of dollars under the Live Nation-owned company's policy that "ticket prices may fluctuate with demand."
Springsteen told Rolling Stone that he sought to sell tickets below market value for years, but shifted his view after 49 years of touring: "This time I told them, 'Hey, we're 73 years old. The guys are there. I want to do what everybody else is doing, my peers.' So that's what happened," he said, while insisting that most tickets are still affordable for his concerts, including shows March 14 in Albany and March 23 in Buffalo.

"We have those tickets that are going to go for that [higher] price somewhere anyway. The ticket broker or someone is going to be taking that money. I'm going, 'Hey, why shouldn't that money go to the guys that are going to be up there sweating three hours a night for it?'" Springsteen continued. "I know it was unpopular with some fans. But if there's any complaints on the way out, you can have your money back."

In the meantime, the Justice Department says it's investigating Live Nation for antitrust violations. New York State Sen. James Skoufis, who helped author a new state law banning hidden fees and boosting fines for scalper bots, is also talking with the New York State Attorney General's Office about possible action two months after the law went into effect with little impact on Ticketmaster, Live Nation and third-party resellers.